Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Tonight's Sky for November 11: Tycho's Supernova (1572)

It
was on this date in 1572 that the great Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe
made his first recorded observations of the supernova that erupted
that year in the constellation of Cassiopeia. The first supernova
seen to the naked eye since the 1054 event, this one served as a
great point of interest for the Renaissance scholars who observed it.
While observed by many astronomers, Brahe got the fame thanks to the
fact that he was quick to print a book on the subject. Hey, being a
member of the nobility had its perks, didn't it?